In the program from last year's Euros, there was an article that said that the ISU was funding a talent development program for skaters from the UK, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Norway, Estonia, Iceland, and Latvia. Top coaches from Russia, Canada, the US, and UK worked with young skaters from participating countries in workshops and training sessions, and they also gave training for coaches. It sounds like a great way to pool resources and get exposure to the type of training that deep national programs have.

From the participants, it looks like this is for singles skaters, and the program is aimed at the younger kids. So far, their biggest success story has been Sweden's Lina Johansson.

With so many countries in the pool, the skaters don't have to rely on top contenders from their countries for role models; they can identify with all of the skaters in the program. In another five to ten years, there may be a crop of contenders from these countries.